Evan Goldman (Eli Golden) has the life kids in New York City dream about. He lives by Central Park and the Met, has a ton of friends, and is preparing for his bar mitzvah. This perfect life is turned upside down when his parents (Debra Messing and Peter Hermann) announce their divorce. A distraught Evan must now move from the heart of Manhattan to Nowheresville, Indiana. With the help of his self-appointed guide to the state, Patrice (Gabriella Uhl), Evan is determined to make his bar mitzvah the biggest party in town. His friendship with Patrice becomes strained when he tries to win over Brett (JD McCrary), Lucy (Frankie McNellis), and Kendra (Lindsey Blackwell), aka the cool kids at school.

13: The Musical’s greatest strength is that it plays completely to its audience. It’s made for tweens and actually casts actors whose age is close to that of their characters. It’s High School Musical for tweens, by tweens. 13: The Musical could alternatively be named Middle School Musical. Instead of talking down to the audience, the script treats them with respect. The writing is quippy and fun, but not in an obnoxious way. The tweens who make up the cast are the least annoying middle schoolers on the planet. This young cast makes the film enjoyable even for those who long ago left their tweenage years in the past.

This long-rumored adaptation of the original Broadway show (which we can thank for introducing us to Elizabeth Gillies and Ariana Grande) manages to revitalize and elevate the original. The spirit of the show remains intact, but it has aged for the better. The cast is vastly more diverse than the one that was on Broadway, and more closely resembles the middle schoolers of today. In the theater version Archie has muscular dystrophy, but the role wasn’t given to a disabled actor. The movie has cast Jonathan Lengel, a disabled actor, to play Archie. This opens so many doors for kids at home watching. Lengel mentioned that he didn’t believe performing in musicals was a possibility for him until he saw Ali Stroker win a Tony. It won’t be long until other actors point to Lengel’s performance as proof that their dreams are possible too.

The magic of 13: The Musical is in the kind way it treats its characters. Moving to a new city, experiencing a first kiss, and turning thirteen are small potatoes for those who have moved on to mortgages and nine-to-five jobs, but 13: The Musical remembers how monumental it feels to be thirteen and have the weight of the world on your shoulders. How easy it is to feel defeated, lonely, and small. These kids are honest representations of the worst years of growing up, and they show the importance of trying to lead with kindness. Kids, adults, teens – everyone messes up and hurts the people they love on occasion, but what’s important is what you do afterward. How you grow, how you apologize, and how you try to do better next time.

It feels a bit sad that 13: The Musical isn’t premiering on cable everywhere at once in the same way High School Musical did sixteen years ago. Something about needing to be in front of your TV at a specific time and knowing that people all across the time zone are watching a new movie together made that experience unforgettable, as well as ripe for creating a tweenage craze. Had 13: The Musical done so, it seems exactly likely that it would have launched a global phenomenon similar to High School Musical. 13: The Musical burst onto the screen in such a self-assured manner that it’s impossible to ignore this showcase of a brand new crop of talented youngsters. Your toes will be tapping and you’ll have a smile on your face. It’s impossible not to be charmed by this kid-life crisis musical.

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